"We Were Taking Our Lives in Our Own Hands"

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil against you falsely for My sake. Rejoice and be exceedingly glad, for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.  Matthew 5:10-12


“We knew we were taking our lives in our own hands”.  That was a comment I heard someone declare on the Today Show recently.  I found myself just staring at the television.  How could anyone so boldly say that? It made me shutter, just to hear it.  These people were recounting a recent shipwreck that they barely survived.

Why would anyone want to take their life in their own hands, thus taking it out of God’s hands?  Not that they would have avoided the shipwreck.  Lives placed in the hands of God, still suffer pain and tragedies.  Consider Paul in his account of his life in 2 Corinthians 6.   He was regarded as an imposter.  He was regarded as unknown.  He experienced dying, beatings, sorrow, poverty and having nothing – all as His life was placed in the hands of God.  Paul suffered the same things that people who “take their lives in their own hands” suffer – probably worse. 

But, because Paul’s life was in God’s hands, in spite of those things, he was known by God, lived productively, rejoiced, made many rich with true riches, and possessed all things.

Now that’s kingdom living! Too many of us live, taking our lives in our own hands, thinking we can avoid the struggles.  But, sadly, in our attempt to avoid those troubles, we fail to experience the blessings that only those who place their lives in God’s hands experience.  All suffering is not due to persecution.  Let us not live our lives with the goal to avoid suffering of any kind.  Rather, may we live to please the One who longs to hold us in His hand and have His way in us and through us.

Here's a challenge:  Be watchful today as you react, as you plan, as you make decisions.  In whose hands did you place those reactions, plans and decisions?  May it be His.